HOME PAGE: No matter what your political views might be... One thing is for certain. In these days of fast news and even faster life styles... We all seem to have forgotten those moments in history that so abruptly and tragically changed this beloved Country of ours... 9/11… How soon we forget…

* ChicagoTribune.com brings us the following report this New Years Eve, stateside… and it starts off like this… Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki declared a new dawn on Saturday as Iraq celebrated the departure of American troops at a ceremony held amid tight security and without Maliki's key political rivals…

* NYDailyNews.com had this report on today’s event and it goes in part like this… Hundreds of people celebrated the departure of U.S troops in the televised event hosted by Maliki in a sports arena.“I declare this day, the 31st of December, on which the withdrawal of foreign forces from Iraq is complete, as a national day,” said Maliki told the crowd… “It is Iraq’s day. It is a feast for all Iraqis. It is the dawn of a new day in Mesopotamia ... Your country is free,” said the prime minister…

* BBC News brings us the following report this Monday evening, stateside and it goes in part like this… North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has died of a heart attack at the age of 69, state media have announced… Millions of North Koreans were "engulfed in indescribable sadness", the KCNA state news agency said, as people wept openly in Pyongyang… KNCA described one of his sons, Kim Jong-un, as the "great successor" whom North Koreans should unite behind…

In Pyongyang, North Korean citizens mourn the death of their leader Kim Jong Il. The above raw video broadcasted Monday on NK’s State run TV shows North Korean people showing their respects to the Dear Leader with lots of tearless cries…

Still trying to rundown the video… I saw parts of it on FOX NEWS yesterday and must say… Senator McCain was very passionate while giving his remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday. I’ll make sure to put it up if I ever run it down…

BAGHDAD, Dec. 15, 2011 – Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta joined Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey and other U.S. and Iraq leaders in honoring eight years of service and sacrifice as they commemorated the end of the U.S. military mission in Iraq.

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“No words, no ceremony can provide full tribute to the sacrifices that have brought this day to pass,” the secretary said during a ceremony here.

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Panetta paid tribute to the Iraqi government and military for their courage, leadership and loyalty to Iraq’s future. “Your dream of an independent and sovereign Iraq is now a reality,” he said.

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He also praised the leadership of Ambassador James Jeffrey and Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, commander of U.S. Forces Iraq, who oversaw the drawdown that the secretary called “one of the most complex logistical undertakings in U.S. military history.”

“Your effort to make this day a reality is nothing short of miraculous,” he said.

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But Panetta reserved his highest praise for more than 1 million U.S. military members who served in Iraq since 2003. “Your nation is deeply indebted to you,” he said. “You have done everything your nation asked you to do and more. Your dedication, your commitment to this mission has been the driving force behind the remarkable progress we have seen here in Baghdad and across the country.”

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The secretary recognized the nearly 4,500 service members who died and more than 30,000 who were wounded making this progress a reality.

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He also acknowledged family members who have experienced the strain, sacrifice and heartbreak of watching their loved ones deploy into harm’s way time and time again.

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The outcome being commemorated today was never certain, the secretary said. He recalled traveling to Iraq in 2006, one of the most challenging periods of the conflict, as part of President George H.W. Bush’s Iraq Study Group. Sectarian violence had spiraled out of control and Iraq was in turmoil.

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Five years later, at great cost in both blood and treasure, “the mission of an Iraq that could govern and secure itself has become real,” the secretary said.

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“The Iraqi army and police have been rebuilt. Violence levels are down, al-Qaida weakened, rule of law strengthened, educational opportunities expanded and economic growth expanding,” he said. “And this progress has been sustained even as we have withdrawn nearly 150,000 U.S. combat forces from the country.”

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The cost has been high, in blood and treasure for the United States and for the Iraqi people, Panetta noted. “But because of the sacrifices made, these years of war have now yielded to a new era of opportunity,” for a free, independent and sovereign Iraq, he said.

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Panetta emphasized that Iraq’s challenges aren’t over, but promised that the United States will continue to stand with Iraq as it navigates them. “Together with the Iraqi people, the United States welcomes the next stage in U.S.-Iraqi relations, one that will be rooted in mutual interest and mutual respect,” he said.

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In addition to a significant diplomatic presence, the United States will continue to promote partnership between U.S. and Iraqi military forces, Panetta said. “We will continue to help Iraq address violent extremism and defend against external threats,” he said, helping protect “all that has been sacrificed and accomplished.”

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“We will continue to have a robust and enduring military presence across the Middle East,” he said.

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For Iraq, Panetta called today an opportunity for it to forge ahead on a path to security and prosperity.

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“We undertake this transition today reminding Iraq that it has in the United States a committed friend and a committed partner,” he said. “We owe it to all the lives that have been sacrificed in this war not to fail.

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“This is not the end,” he concluded. “This is truly the beginning.”

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After the casing of the colors, Panetta met with about 100 service members deployed during the final days of Operation New Dawn to thank them for their service.

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“It is because of you,” and those who served here during the past eight years, “that we are able to be here today to mark the end of this war,” he said.

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Asked by a young service member if the United States will be able to assist the Iraqis in the future if they need it, Panetta expressed confidence that it will, in accordance with an agreement to be reached by the Americans and Iraqis.

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“We may be ending the war, but we are not walking away from our responsibilities,” he said.

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Written by Donna Miles - American Forces Press Service

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Here’s another good read I ran across at DoD today. Click it out at link below…

Over the next week or so, the last few thousand U.S. troops will leave Iraq for the last time and that will be it. That is until a new Republican President is elected into the White House next year and then I can see a day when more of a U.S. presents in Iraq will be felt and by the asking of the Iraqi government too.

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Let it be known… President Obama has been anything but a close friend to the Iraqi Government and a strained relationship has ensued between us because of it.

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Just look at today’s ceremony at Baghdad International Airport… First thing I noticed was that there were hardly any Iraqi officials attending. You would have at least thought that after all we have gone through, together, over the last so many years… that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki would have showed up! But not…

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and legendary aircraft designer Burt Rutan have teamed up on a new winged rocket that would be carried aloft by a gargantuan twin-fuselage mothership and then dropped from 30,000 feet for the climb to orbit, they announced today… The new rocket will be funded by Allen through a new company known as Stratolaunch Systems and built by Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, of Hawthorne, California…

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

I remember back in 2005, how the left and the MSM were treating our troops. Reporting and miss-reporting ANYTHING that would make the troops look bad.

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They would spin the news of the day to try and show that the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces were nothing more than cold blooded murders… who loved killing… even women, children and the elderly!

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These people still make me sick, even today, as they now try to be all that, pro troops if I may. But be not fooled by them my friends. You just let Obama lose the White House and the left lose the Senate next year… and just wait and see how they turn on the troops in full force, in any upcoming missions under a Republican led President.

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With that said… The following is a Video I put together back in 2005 to show the true hearts of our fighting men and women…

Saturday, December 10, 2011

* REUTERS brings us the following report and it starts off like this… The budding rivalry between surging Newt Gingrich and former frontrunner Mitt Romney will take center stage Saturday evening in the first of two Republican presidential debates in Iowa over the next five days… Gingrich, Romney and four other White House contenders will make their case to voters in a race that polls show is still up for grabs less than a month before Iowa kicks off the state-by-state Republican nominating contest… The debate will be broadcast nationally on ABC at 9 p.m. EST from Drake University in Des Moines. Another Republican debate will be held on Thursday in Sioux City, Iowa… "These are the last chances for the candidates to really have an impact on the race before the voting starts," said Republican strategist Matt Mackowiak. "It's a huge opportunity."…

One of my favorite moments in tonight’s debate would had to been when Newt said..."I think sometimes it is helpful to have a president of the United States with the courage to tell the truth. Just as it was Reagan who went around his entire national security apparatus to call the Soviet Union an 'evil empire.' Reagan believed the power of truth restated the world and reframed the world. I'm a Reaganite.I'm proud to be a Reaganite. I will tell the truth, even if it causes some confusion sometimes with the timid."

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Bottom line is Newt did an outstanding job tonight in the debate. Romney on the other hand really had a poor performance tonight. And I believe it will show to be so in the polls that come out next week.

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I also believe Romney is going to have to do a much better job of it in next week’s debate on Fox News. If not… he just might end up having a shorter run of it then he was counting on!

About Me

My pen name is AubreyJ... I’m 60 years young and I live in Shreveport, LA. I've been married only once and that is to the same lovely lady named Amy. (It’s hard to believe that after all these years she still claims me as hers!) Have one Daughter named Michelle and two wonderful Grandsons named David, (18) and Chase, (13). I spent most of my adult life as a Manager in the Sales and Service profession. Today I am semi-retired and spend most of my time searching for news stories and Blogging on the ones that I find news worthy. I’m a... just right of the middle... Republican, who’s 1000% Pro Victory on the War on Terror. I’m a strong supporter of the Troops and my Political Party... Even though I find myself in some disagreement, yet MAJOR disappointment with where the leaders of my Party have taken us over these last so many years. Sadly -- I still cannot find very much of anything that I agree with the Dems on these days... GOD BLESS THE TROOPS... their families and this great country of ours.
AubreyJ.........